


Barring Any Surprises.

by StrawhatsAndDelibirds



Series: Modern verse [15]
Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-23
Updated: 2019-12-23
Packaged: 2021-02-25 23:27:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,367
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21923659
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StrawhatsAndDelibirds/pseuds/StrawhatsAndDelibirds
Summary: Sometimes you see someone and go "Hey you're not supposed to be here." and then it's your problem.
Series: Modern verse [15]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1571110
Kudos: 31





	Barring Any Surprises.

Man, one of the best parts of owning multiple bars was getting to sit back in one of the quieter ones and just chill. Sure it was like one in the afternoon, but it wasn’t like he was getting drunk yet. Mostly at this point he was snacking on great bar food and maybe helping Makino a little with the prep for the evening. 

His other bars had the staff to handle themselves. Party’s Bar was a much smaller place, and all things considered it was a pretty old man bar. There wasn’t any loud music or extravagant drinks. It had a jukebox and standard drinks. It also had a great pool table and probably the best burger out of all his bars. 

It was more about the food and company than the drinks, and if it weren’t for the fear of Linlin trying to buy him out and start an accidental turf war because he was encroaching on her territory, he’d probably encourage Makino to turn this place into a restaurant. He might’ve had a fairly big influence in this town, but not enough to throw his weight that much. He was reckless, but he wasn’t that bad. 

Having a hold on most of the bars was more than enough in his opinion. Especially with most of the places he owned being pretty self sufficient. It gave him a lot of time to sit back and do whatever he wanted, like enjoy a nice burger as they leisurely got ready for the evening. 

“Can I have a bite?” A tiny voice asked him. It was definitely not Makino’s voice. And last he saw she had gone back into the kitchen. 

Sure enough, looking down he saw a little kid. He didn’t have a coat, or shoes, but there was most certainly a toddler that had managed to get in the bar somehow. How he had done that was a mystery, especially since the doors were locked. 

“Uhhh, where’d you come from?” 

“I dunno. It was boring though. Can I get a bite of your burger?” That was nothing. Boring could mean something if he was in tune with kids enough to know what they did and didn’t find boring. What babies did and didn’t find interesting was a mystery to him. 

There was a reason why he didn’t interact with kids. He was supremely bad at it. He was cool with young adults, but he was nowhere close to that. Young child was generous as it was. This was a whole ass baby that wandered into the bar. Makino was a nice lady and someone who wasn’t known for being a bastard. Maybe she could help.

“I’m gonna be right back. You stay here and don’t touch anything.” He’d slip back into the kitchen. “Makino!! There’s a baby in here!” 

But his answer was met with silence. Shit that was right. She left to stock up for the night. What if Mihawk was home? He had two kids, he knew about babies. He’d rush over to the phone and wait anxiously for him to pick up. 

“Yes, this is Mihawk Dracule.” Thank god it was him. 

“Mihawk you gotta come over. Makino’s out and a baby snuck into the bar. I don’t know where he came from, or who he belongs to.” Shanks could faintly hear a groan of annoyance. 

“Shanks, you are an adult. You are more than capable of solving this yourself. The child had to have come from some nearby building. Put in a little effort into finding the parents.” And then he hung up on him. In his hour of need! How often did he have a child wander into his place. He wasn’t equipped for this kind of thing. 

Okay, so the kid didn’t have shoes or a jacket, so that meant that he had to put his own jacket on the kid, and carry him. There was probably somewhere that the kid crawled out of. Hopefully this kid didn’t wander in off the streets cause he didn’t have a home. Shanks was in no way ready to be a dad. 

With his jacket on hand, Shanks reentered the bar. The first thing he noticed was the kid eating his burger. As much as he wanted to be mad, it was kinda funny to see this kid trying to eat a burger that was as big as his head. This kid was wild. 

But whether he wanted to or not, the kid was coming with him. He had a family that he belonged to that he had to be returned to. Shanks wasn’t the kind of person who was responsible enough to keep a whole other person alive. He could barely manage one. 

“But I’m not done eating.” The kid whined and squirmed. He could fight all he wanted, but he wasn’t going to get out of this so easily. 

“That wasn’t even your burger, squirt.” That was a dad name that popped out, and Shanks wasn’t sure if he much cared for that. He’d ignore it and carry the kid out. 

He had to be fast. The kid might’ve had a jacket now, but that didn’t mean that he did. Winter was a total bitch even with a jacket, and he only had a sweater as extra protection. The kid had to have left footprints on his way over. Shanks was fortunate, because he didn’t even have to judge what size shoe he saw. The kid had no shoes so he left genuine footprints. 

Shanks wasn’t sure how he couldn’t have figured out where exactly this kid had come from. Out of all the places nearby, there was a thrift store. It wasn’t exactly a thrilling place to be, but they always had some kinda weird shit in there that had zero explanation or reason. Things like those must’ve been lost on a baby.

Holding the kid up in the air, much like Simba at the beginning of Lion King, Shanks hoped that this kid could help him out a little. 

“So do you see anyone you know?” He asked, hopefully he’d get an answer that was more helpful than “somewhere boring.” 

“Yeah.” 

“Great. Who were you here with?” This way he’d have a vague ballpark on who he was looking for. 

“Dadan and Ace.” Not incredibly helpful, but he had names to call out. It was something at least. 

“Great.” He’d lower the kid and carry him under his arm as he called out their names and wandered around the store. They’d hear him eventually. 

It fortunately didn’t take too much longer until a big woman who was out of breathe, with a cart full of clothes and a slightly less young child found them. 

“Oh my god I’ve been looking all over for you brat.” The woman panted, struggling to catch her breathe. “I turn around for a second to look through a rack and you disappear.”

“I had a burger. This old guy took me away from it though.” 

“Old guy?” That actually kinda hurt his feelings. He wasn’t like a teenager or in his early twenties, but he wasn’t old. “Also that wasn’t your burger. Nevermind. Here’s your kid back.” He’d put the kid back in the cart. 

“Thanks, wish I could say this was the first time I’ve had to do this. How far did he get this time.” He kinda felt bad for her. He had seen a single parent before, but Mihawk seemed more like an exception than the rule. This lady seemed to have her hands full with her kids. 

“Just a couple doors down. Still not sure how he managed to get in since the door was locked. Speaking of, you wanna stop by and have lunch? We’re technically not open, but I doubt Makino would mind. Let the kid have an actual burger of his own.” That he didn’t steal from him in a crime. “I’d be my treat.” 

“What’s the catch.” She was suspicious, but that was understandable. 

“The catch is that you have to be okay with the place being technically a bar.” She thought it over. 

“Ah fuck it. Sure, just let me pay for my things.”


End file.
